Going on holiday - why should you learn some of the local language?

by Sue ClarkPosted 4 months, 3 weeks ago0 comments

A recent survey of over 2000 people by the British Council found that 40% were embarrassed by their language skills but 65% said that learning a few words and phrases before going abroad was imp… Continue Reading »

Marketing translations for technical products – it’s what we’re good at

by Sue ClarkPosted 7 months, 2 weeks ago0 comments

Selling your highly technical products overseas can be tricky – you’ve got a cutting-edge, hi-tech product which needs to make the right impact with a specialist audience. How do you make su… Continue Reading »

5 top tips to help you ensure a quality technical manual translation

by Sue ClarkPosted 11 months ago0 comments

Translating a technical manual is a specialist job, needing a clear understanding of the functions and features of the equipment being described. It’s not a job that any translator can take on, … Continue Reading »

Why is learning Chinese difficult for Westerners?

by Sue ClarkPosted 1 year, 2 months ago0 comments

Learning Chinese is not easy, and there is a lot to consider when thinking about picking up a new language. One of the most difficult things for Westerners is learning a new alphabet and letters… Continue Reading »

How do I ensure my non-English speaking employee has a fair hearing?

by Sue ClarkPosted 1 year, 4 months ago0 comments

For HR staff working either freelance or in-house, there may be a time when they need to interview an employee whose first language is not English. How this interview is approached, regardless o… Continue Reading »

How reliable is machine translation at the moment and what are its limitations?

by Sue ClarkPosted 1 year, 6 months ago0 comments

The most popular machine translation software at the moment is Google Translate, although other programs are available. The software has improved remarkably over the last few years, with regular… Continue Reading »

Top tips for working with a court interpreter

by Sue ClarkPosted 1 year, 6 months ago0 comments

Interpreting in the courtroom is a highly specialist skill, requiring knowledge of the court system, complete impartiality and excellent listening skills. Here are our top tips to help you get … Continue Reading »

Quick guide: translation technology

by Sue ClarkPosted 2 years, 5 months ago0 comments

Technology is taking over most areas of our lives, sometimes making things easier and sometimes making it a whole lot more difficult. Anyone who uses a computer will know how frustrating it can … Continue Reading »

Cultural advice for business travel

by Sue ClarkPosted 2 years, 6 months ago0 comments

Cultural understanding is a key factor when you are travelling for business and are trying to make meetings go smoothly and productively. Building up a relationship of trust with your opposite n… Continue Reading »

What does a Project Manager do?

by Sue ClarkPosted 3 years ago0 comments

Your project manager is your first point of contact for all your language requirements. Our PMs have a high level of technical knowledge and skills to ensure your project runs as smoothly as po… Continue Reading »

What kinds of projects do we handle?

by Sue ClarkPosted 3 years, 3 months ago0 comments

Whenever I mention that I run a translation company, there’s usually a brief moment when you can see people wondering what’s involved. Are there banks of computers humming quietly, are there lin… Continue Reading »

Want to save time and money when placing a translation project?

by Sue ClarkPosted 3 years, 6 months ago0 comments

We’ve come up with a handy checklist to help you make sure you have all the information we’ll need before starting your translation project. This will ensure that we can get to work straight awa… Continue Reading »

I’ve got 10 pages – how much will it cost to translate?

by Sue ClarkPosted 4 years, 2 months ago0 comments

It’s surprising how many times we get asked to cost a document for translation without the chance to see it – “it’s 4 pages long” a customer might say, or “there’s about 30,000 words.” So why is… Continue Reading »

It's not just about the manual

by Sue ClarkPosted 4 years, 3 months ago0 comments

Often an initial enquiry from a company will be for a technical manual to be translated to go with a product being shipped abroad. However, that’s just part of the story for some of our clients.… Continue Reading »

Haybridge languages conference - spreading the word.

by Sue ClarkPosted 4 years, 9 months ago0 comments

Here's Sue Clark presenting to Year 9 students at our local Haybridge Gifted & Talented Linguists conference a couple of weeks ago. Over 90 students attended the day from across 3 schoo… Continue Reading »

Why can't young people be bothered with languages?

by Sue ClarkPosted 4 years, 10 months ago0 comments

At a recent school’s career fair, I was once again impressed by the interest the students (in this case aged about 14) showed in various careers. But although the Army stand, the engineering sta… Continue Reading »

We've moved!

by Sue ClarkPosted 5 years, 8 months ago0 comments

We are now settling in following our move to the Europa Building on the Hoo Farm Industrial Estate in Kidderminster. Our move sees us join with a bigger group of companies in one building, inclu… Continue Reading »

International awareness - more important than speaking a language?

by Sue ClarkPosted 5 years, 10 months ago0 comments

A booklet dropped through our letterbox recently from HSBC. Inside were quotes and articles, statistics and pie charts concerning international trade, with a particular emphasis on mid-sized co… Continue Reading »

Separated by a common language

by Sue ClarkPosted 6 years, 1 month ago0 comments

The phrase above is part of a quotation attributed to playwright George Bernard Shaw, which describes the differences between British and American English. When requesting translation services, … Continue Reading »

Humerous translations have a serious side

by Sue ClarkPosted 6 years, 2 months ago0 comments

If you have been on a holiday or business trip abroad recently, the chances are that you will have seen some awkward phrasing on a restaurant menu or an advert that sounds strange in English. Yo… Continue Reading »

The story of the potent pen

by Sue ClarkPosted 6 years, 3 months ago0 comments

This week, I thought I'd share some of the consequences of bad translation. Sometimes, even large, wildly successful companies underestimate the value of transferring their message to a foreign … Continue Reading »

Mr Vacuum Cleaner and the perils of Google Translate

by Sue ClarkPosted 6 years, 5 months ago0 comments

We sometimes use Google Translate to get a gist translation for example to check the sense of a quick email. We did laugh yesterday however when we had a short piece of Polish to cross check and… Continue Reading »

Rain, mizzle or drizzle....

by Sue ClarkPosted 6 years, 6 months ago0 comments

I came across this article on BBC News yesterday, which talks about the number of words we have in the English language for rain. Considering the amount of rain we've seen over the past month it… Continue Reading »

The cult of the hyperpolyglot

by Dan NashPosted 6 years, 10 months ago0 comments

I really enjoyed this article and was amazed at the skills shown by the people interviewed. My professional languages are French and German, in which I feel quite happy to chat away, and I have … Continue Reading »

Variety is the spice of life (Part Two)

by Dan NashPosted 7 years, 4 months ago0 comments

A normal day in the MTT office will see us managing projects for the translation of technical manuals, contracts, terms and conditions, brochures, information sheets, press releases and letters.… Continue Reading »

What's it like to work at MTT - guest post from Megan

by Dan NashPosted 7 years, 4 months ago0 comments

My name is Megan and I’m here at Midland Technical for a month-long internship to build on my skills - I recently finished a degree in Translation with French and German - and discover more abou… Continue Reading »

MTT

With over 30 years experience, ISO accreditation and corporate membership of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting; MTT translation experts provide highly specialist technical translation services, specializing in the engineering, marketing and legal sectors.Visit Site

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